Sommelier Yannick Bejamin

The restaurateur receives $1 million award for advocacy efforts for people with disabilities

Sommelier Yannick Bejamin
As a restaurant owner, Yannick Benjamin has created a space welcoming to all diners and employees; as an advocate, he has helped raise funds for research on spinal cord injuries. (Mikhail Lipyansky)
From the Mar 31, 2023, issue

In October, sommelier, restaurateur and wine shop owner Yannick Benjamin learned he had received the $1 million Craig H. Neilsen Visionary Prize, an award for those pushing boundaries while living with spinal cord injuries. Benjamin, who uses a wheelchair, is an influential advocate for disability accessibility in the restaurant industry. Benjamin recently spoke to Wine Spectator editorial assistant Julia Larson about what accessibility truly means in the restaurant world. 

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